Bible Mysteries: Why Is John Called the Beloved Disciple?

Who is considered Jesus’ favorite disciple and why? The disciple most often identified as Jesus’ favorite is John, the son of Zebedee. This understanding stems primarily from the Gospel of John, where the author refers repeatedly to “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20). While the Gospel never explicitly names this disciple as John, early Christian tradition strongly associated this beloved disciple with John the Evangelist. But we must be cautious about speaking of “favorites” when…